It was a beautiful day. The service was very nice indeed. The flyover by the Hornet and Kfir was most excellent.

Lex Departing

Some of us at Fort Rosecrans. Among them are Pogue, me and xBradtc among the bloggers along with Beth, Armando, John and a couple I do not remember.. Wing Wife took the picture .

Wing Wife is in this one(nice lady in the blue)

A large number of folks were not bloggers but simply enjoyed reading Lex……and who didn’t?

I also managed to run into a man who I had common friends and acquaintances with past and present.

But my moment was delivering a message from our good blog bud, Pinch Paisley.

I went up to Mary Lefon and told her I had a message from Pinch on the East Coast. Lost the voice for a moment then. Gave her a kiss on the cheek and a hug. She returned both and then pressed a Memorial Challenge Coin into my hand. Almost lost it completely had it not been been for Mary and Marcia(Wing Wife) along with Beth.

Gonna miss him,  yeah, definitely. Even on the occasion he gave me constructive criticism, it was good. That will remain between us now, eternity. The relationship was always mech to pilot, Petty Officer to Captain. It was better that way.

Eye in the Clouds - Courtesy John Carmichael

 I saw this posted on Facebook and it immediately became my desktop background at work

The caption reads:

A photo I took from seat 7F, westbound somewhere near Chicago… 34,000+ feet… Was captivated by the arch created it’s own frame for the Cumulus Cloud

The photographer is a fellow blogger who I’ve known online for quite a while now and I hope he’ll forgive me for failing to add a link to the blogroll on the right until tonight   John Carmichael is another milblogger and photographer and his published works are well worth your time   He was very kind in allowing me to publish this photograph here for your enjoyment   I found John’s place quite a while back through a link over on Neptunus Lex and he has a fitting tribute to Lex posted at his place as well

Head on over to Carmichael’s Position and browse around a while – I think you’ll like the place

Thanks again, John

In memory of Carroll 'Lex' Lefon - Guinness - For Strength!

 Tonight is  a night of remembrance.

Many around the United States and most likely quite a few overseas are raising a bottle or a glass in memory of someone many never had the chance to meet in person.  Carroll “Lex” Lefon was lost to us earlier this week when the fighter jet he was flying crashed at NAS Fallon.  Whisper, a guest blogger, has kindly published a post so that friends and family can leave tributes and eulogies in the comments.  There are currently 1,225 comments.  Secretary of the Navy, Ray Mabus, has even sent a personal note which Whisper posted as well.

I stopped and picked up some Guinness (for strength!) on the way home so that I could toast Lex from here in Vegas.  Many others are doing the same thing in pubs, bars, taverns, and their own homes and have connected on Facebook to share the time.

Thanks and prayers are still going out from here in Las Vegas.  They’re being sent for Lex, for his family, friends, and colleagues.  We’re much better for having known him.

PS – Steve here in Las Vegas has posted a list of tributes to Lex over on his blog.  Please consider stopping by and looking through the links.

Neptunus Lex - Husband, Father, Aviator, Warrior, Poet and Blogger - You will be missed.

 I heard that there was a horrible possibility last night.  I found out this morning that it wasn’t just a possibility anymore.  It was a fact. A wife had lost her husband.  Daughters and a son had lost their father.  A nation had lost a patriot, warrior, and leader.  I had lost a friend and inspiration.  The world had lost a good man.

Lex had taken a fire breathing Israeli made K-21 Kfir up into the sky yesterday as a civilian contract pilot helping to train aviators for the United States Navy’s Fighter Weapons School.  He never made it home.

Captain Carrol Lefon USN (retired) was better known as Neptunus Lex to those who read blogs.  Lex was everything I said in the first paragraph of this post and so much more.  If I were to think of words to describe him, quite a few come to mind.  Professional, excellent, humorous, loving, wickedly intelligent…  I wish I could be half the man he was.  Truth be told, I’d settle for being half the writer he was.  I don’t think it’s really sunk in yet that there will never be another post from a master of language and wit to take my mind off all that’s clouding it on any given day.  Like so many others, I never had the opportunity to meet him in person.  We exchanged emails from time to time and each one came across like I was corresponding with an old friend.  I devoured his writing on a daily basis and again it felt like I was reading something from someone I actually knew rather than someone who just posted on a blog.  The comments on the memorial post on his blog tell the story of who Lex was much better than any words I can conjure tonight.

So many things have swirled around in my mind since I heard the confirmation of Lex’s passing this morning and I just can’t seem to put any of it into words in a way that would do justice to his memory.  So instead of trying to do that, I’ll try to at least put it into words the best way I can and keep it short.

To Lex – Thank you for your service and for the kindness you’ve shown me over the years.  You were an inspiration to me and one of the reasons I kept up blogging over the years.  I doubt you realized the way that link on your blogroll boosted my morale and the pride I felt when I saw it up there.  You’ve been an example of diplomacy, decorum, professionalism, leadership, and what people mean when they say that someone is a good man.  You were an example of The Right Stuff.  While I’m incredibly sad for having lost you, I’m even more glad for having had the opportunity to know you through your writings.  We’ll be sure to raise a few toasts with some good Gunness (for strength!) in your memory.

To the Lefon family – I extend my deepest condolences and wish there was something more I could do for you.  I can’t imagine what you’re going through right now.  You will all be in my thoughts and prayers.  I’ve said my thanks to Lex, but you also deserve thanks as well for being understanding and kind enough to share him with us along with sharing yourselves through him and his writing.

To everyone else – Please take some time to go through the archives of Capt. Lefon’s blog.  You’re sure to find wit and laughter, but you’ll also find a tremendous amount of wisdom about an astounding array of topics.  One of my favorite literary works penned by the good Captain was titled Rhythms.  It is well worth your time.

Godspeed and blue skies, Lex.  You will be greatly missed.

We had to work two hours of mandatory overtime on the day before Thanksgiving, so I went in and worked from 0600 – 1630 and left for Price immediately following work.  I arrived just shy of seven hours later safe and sound   I opted to take the car for this journey as forecast low temperatures were somewhere in the low 20′s in Price and I really don’t have the gear to deal with that sort of cold.  I don’t like driving my car anymore, but I dislike hypothermia even more

Thanksgiving went extremely well and though Cindy had to work the rest of the days I was up there, we still had a good time   I went out exploring just a bit while she was at work and made sure to bring my camera

25 November 2011 - Abandoned house near Wellington, UT

25 November 2011 - Abandoned house near Wellington, UT

25 November 2011 - Long lonely highway near Wellington, UT

25 November 2011 - Semi-frozen creek near Wellington, UT

26 November 2011 - Cool lighting near Wellington, UT but the clouds were moving in fast

25 November 2011 - Semi-frozen creek near Wellington, UT

25 November 2011 - Weather moving in from the north near Wellington, UT

 I headed out from Price toward Nine Mile Canyon, but I noticed that it was indeed extremely cold out and that clouds were moving in quite quickly.  Up just a little ways past where the creek pictures were taken the road had turned to dirt.  Putting two and two together I figured there was a halfway decent chance that I might be caught on a muddy road in a snow storm.  The HHR just ain’t set up for that, so I headed back toward Price.  Still, I think the trip was worth it if for no other reason than it got some nice pictures

26 November 2011 - Looking north from the Wedge Overlook on the San Rafael Swell

26 November 2011 - Panorama - Wedge Overlook on the San Rafael Swell

26 November 2011 - Panorama - Wedge Overlook on the San Rafael Swell

26 November 2011 - Panorama - Looking out over grazing land on the San Rafael Swell

26 November 2011 - Sunset in Price, UT

 26 November saw me set out for a nice drive in the countryside south of Price.  I’d been to all the places before, but it’s country that I really like.  Sadly, the dinosaur quarry was closed but that was OK – I had a very nice drive in the middle of nowhere   While I think the V-Star could handle the very nicely maintained dirt roads, I’m glad I had the car because it was something like 24° when I left

I had to head home on 27 November, but I’m growing to like Utah more with every trip

Happy belated Thanks giving everyone